Perry Park - Olympic Application

[HappyGuus]

What's this about?

 

[coyclonus]

That's "Welnix". He's infamous on sokkah reddit and twitter. I'd take anything he says or does with a massive grain of salt myself.

 

[zimbos05]

With the announcement of more games at Kayo next season, it's pretty much necessary to build a boutique football stadium in Brisbane. Suncorp is upping it's concert numbers and with the Dolphins and Broncos being bigger draws, they'll get priority. It is no longer a question of why it's needed. The Government needs to deliver this now.

 

[zimbos05]

Just to my previous post. I know that Kayo works well in terms of crowd size and facility, I was speaking to someone people in the know and the NRL is considering a 3rd Brisbane team. With this in mind, they'll need every stadium they can get. Even if Easts-Jets combine, they don't have facilities to support it. The Broncos NRLW already play at Langlands. If Dolphins eventually get a women's team too, Kayo would be their go to and they'd get priority.

Football can't rely on other codes anymore.

 

[libelous]

Just to my previous post. I know that Kayo works well in terms of crowd size and facility, I was speaking to someone people in the know and the NRL is considering a 3rd Brisbane team. With this in mind, they'll need every stadium they can get. Even if Easts-Jets combine, they don't have facilities to support it. The Broncos NRLW already play at Langlands. If Dolphins eventually get a women's team too, Kayo would be their go to and they'd get priority.

Football can't rely on other codes anymore.

I don’t know if they can rely on the government either.

 

[HappyGuus]

Another oval upgraded. We still await Perry Park's turn.

 

[Frankly Speaking]

Just to my previous post. I know that Kayo works well in terms of crowd size and facility, I was speaking to someone people in the know and the NRL is considering a 3rd Brisbane team. With this in mind, they'll need every stadium they can get. Even if Easts-Jets combine, they don't have facilities to support it. The Broncos NRLW already play at Langlands. If Dolphins eventually get a women's team too, Kayo would be their go to and they'd get priority.

Football can't rely on other codes anymore.

Football can rely on the other codes to continue to f$$k the playing surface. That's one thing we absolutely can count on.

 

[coyclonus]

Another oval upgraded. We still await Perry Park's turn.

300 Million for an oval that won't be used for the Olympics at all. Plenty of legacy potential there, but none for the Games itself.

Meanwhile Perry would give both and everything's gone very, very quiet.

 

[dr. bellows]

300 Million for an oval that won't be used for the Olympics at all. Plenty of legacy potential there, but none for the Games itself.

Meanwhile Perry would give both and everything's gone very, very quiet.

Why is it being upgraded? Just for the Ekka? Or does NRL or another code have plans to play there? From football's (soccer) point of view, there's a lot to like about that location. Very central, great transport options, good size stadium for the Roar at 20,000 capacity. Yes, oval shape is less than ideal but not unheard of. Newly renovated would add to its appeal. If Perry Park continues to be ignored by state governments, the Roar should put up their hands for RNA Showgrounds, imo.

 

[coyclonus]

Why is it being upgraded?

That's the question. I'm assuming it's a semi-bribe to give the land around it for the athlete's village/developers post-games.

"Let us use this/give this away, and we'll give you a new arena".

The argument against it from Football's POV would be it's not fit for purpose.

 

[dr. bellows]

That's the question. I'm assuming it's a semi-bribe to give the land around it for the athlete's village/developers post-games.

"Let us use this/give this away, and we'll give you a new arena".

The argument against it from Football's POV would be it's not fit for purpose.

Not fit for purpose because it's oval shaped or something more?

 

[coyclonus]

Not fit for purpose because it's oval shaped or something more?

That would certainly be a part of it.

But also open stands exposed to the summer sun and no way to help keep the noise in.

The venue also wouldn't be controlled by football, which I personally think just kicks this can further down the road.

 

[dr. bellows]

That would certainly be a part of it.

But also open stands exposed to the summer sun and no way to help keep the noise in.

The venue also wouldn't be controlled by football, which I personally think just kicks this can further down the road.

All fair points but Kayo has open stands and controlled by NRL. For me, it's not a matter of seeking perfection. It's whether I prefer Suncorp, RNA or Kayo. None of them is a slam dunk, they all have issues. It will be interesting to see if the RNA upgrade involves more covered stands. Anyway, unless either Perry Park in its current state is deemed acceptable or an upgrade is suddenly announced, it looks to me like a contest between those 3 stadiums as to which is the best fit.

 

[Football us life]

I would love to Perry Park redeveloped into a 10-15K boutique football stadium. It would reinvigorate Brisbane as a bona fide A-League city. It might even encourage a second franchise eventually and a city if 2.5m should be able to accommodate two A League clubs...

However, if we look at it through a political lens, Perry Park is caught in a catch-22 of institutional bias.

The political class in Queensland prefers to spend billions on mega-events and favoured traditional codes, treats inner-city football infrastructure as a low priority, and can easily hide behind bureaucratic "stadium taskforce reports" that claim Brisbane's existing suite of taxpayer-funded stadiums is already enough....

So I'm going to stick my neck out and say the quiet part out loud and plant my flag right here.

Perry Park is never, ever going to be redeveloped into a modern boutique stadium.

Forget the glossy artist renders. Forget the recycled press releases from Football Queensland every few years timed to coincide with a World Cup bid or an election cycle. It is a dead project walking.

 

[Midfielder]

This is where having media mates help.

Location A suits AFL or NRL...lots of questions to governments....10 people want it so they are interviewed constantly others join in the pressure mounts on the government.

Football comes along the same media folk think of reasons it won't work, get the same 10 people to say why it's a bad idea others join in the pressure not to build is placed on the government.

 

[Midfielder]

This is where having media mates help.

Location A suits AFL or NRL...lots of questions to governments....10 people want it so they are interviewed constantly others join in the pressure mounts on the government.

Football comes along the same media folk think of reasons it won't work, get the same 10 people to say why it's a bad idea others join in the pressure not to build is placed on the government.

This is where Channel 10 could help but fail, and maybe if Gallop had not declared work on SBS they would join in.

 

[Football us life]

This is where having media mates help.

Location A suits AFL or NRL...lots of questions to governments....10 people want it so they are interviewed constantly others join in the pressure mounts on the government.

Football comes along the same media folk think of reasons it won't work, get the same 10 people to say why it's a bad idea others join in the pressure not to build is placed on the government.

Hit the nail on the head. That is the exact media machinery behind the scenes that kills projects like the Perry Park redevelopment before they even get out of first gear.....

For the Favoured Codes (AFL/NRL):

Let's say a suburban ground or major stadium needs a $150M injection. Instantly, the friendly media network rallies. Every morning show and back-page column features high-profile code executives, star players, and sympathetic journalists asking urgent questions: "Why is the government starving our game? When will the grassroots be saved?" Ten people say it, then fifty join in, and within a week, politicians feel the heat and open the wallet.

For Football:

The exact same media playbook runs in reverse. The moment a $200M boutique stadium for Perry Park is floated, the institutional media gatekeepers immediately start manufacturing reasons why it’s a pipe dream. They wheel out commentators and "fiscal experts" to question the ROI, magnify administrative bickering, and amplify every excuse for why it won't work. Suddenly, the narrative isn't “look at this massive participation base being ignored,” it’s “why would government spend money on the soccer when Suncorp exists?”

The pressure is systematically engineered to push the government away from funding football infrastructure. They don't have to outright say no but the media cycle does the heavy lifting to make saying "no" look like the responsible, safe choice.

The cold sobering reality is that Football in Australia isn't just played on a pitch, it's played against an entrenched institutional machine.

And that’s why Perry Park is a microcosm of the wider Australian football experience. It’s the ultimate symbol of a game that is massive, vibrant, and vital to millions, forced to constantly beg crumbs off a table belonging to a machine that would rather see it stay in its lane or even die a slow death.

 

[Frankly Speaking]

I would love to Perry Park redeveloped into a 10-15K boutique football stadium. It would reinvigorate Brisbane as a bona fide A-League city. It might even encourage a second franchise eventually and a city if 2.5m should be able to accommodate two A League clubs...

However, if we look at it through a political lens, Perry Park is caught in a catch-22 of institutional bias.

The political class in Queensland prefers to spend billions on mega-events and favoured traditional codes, treats inner-city football infrastructure as a low priority, and can easily hide behind bureaucratic "stadium taskforce reports" that claim Brisbane's existing suite of taxpayer-funded stadiums is already enough....

So I'm going to stick my neck out and say the quiet part out loud and plant my flag right here.

Perry Park is never, ever going to be redeveloped into a modern boutique stadium.

Forget the glossy artist renders. Forget the recycled press releases from Football Queensland every few years timed to coincide with a World Cup bid or an election cycle. It is a dead project walking.

Unfortunately, I agree.

 

[Football us life]

And another thing....

The ultimate tragedy of the whole situation. The argument for Perry Park isn't just about sentimentality logistically and geographically, it has the raw blueprint to be the absolute crown jewel of boutique football grounds in the country.

It sits directly on a major train line in Bowen Hills, practically adjacent to major transport spines, meaning tens of thousands of fans can flow straight off the rail network right into the gates without choking suburban motorways. Try getting that kind of inner-city commuter ease anywhere else.

Perry Park sits right on the border of Bowen Hills and Fortitude Valley. You are literally a stone's throw from King Street, Gasworks, and the James Street precinct.

You’ve got world-class dining, craft breweries like Felons, high-end restaurants like Montrachet ( my favourite French restaurant) and Bar Gusto, bars, and thousands of inner-city residents living within a 5-minute walk.

Matchday culture is already built and waiting. Imagine a packed 12,000-seat crowd at Perry Park spilling out onto the streets post-game into dozens of packed bars and restaurants. It would be the absolute blueprint for a modern, inner-city rectangular stadium experience.

It is genuinely the spiritual home of football in Queensland. It doesn't feel like a sterile, out-of-town oval retrofitted with temporary seats; it has history, grit, and an inner-city gritty character that modern stadium design tries desperately and expensively to manufacture from scratch. Middlesbrough played there in 1975 you dont get any more authentic than that!!

Instead of a crown jewel that could anchor a proper game-day culture in the heart of Brisbane, we get bureaucratic ghost-town excuses, media soccer hate campaigns and a fucken parking lot.

Absolute tragedy.....

 

[patjennings]

Hit the nail on the head. That is the exact media machinery behind the scenes that kills projects like the Perry Park redevelopment before they even get out of first gear.....

For the Favoured Codes (AFL/NRL):

Let's say a suburban ground or major stadium needs a $150M injection. Instantly, the friendly media network rallies. Every morning show and back-page column features high-profile code executives, star players, and sympathetic journalists asking urgent questions: "Why is the government starving our game? When will the grassroots be saved?" Ten people say it, then fifty join in, and within a week, politicians feel the heat and open the wallet.

For Football:

The exact same media playbook runs in reverse. The moment a $200M boutique stadium for Perry Park is floated, the institutional media gatekeepers immediately start manufacturing reasons why it’s a pipe dream. They wheel out commentators and "fiscal experts" to question the ROI, magnify administrative bickering, and amplify every excuse for why it won't work. Suddenly, the narrative isn't “look at this massive participation base being ignored,” it’s “why would government spend money on the soccer when Suncorp exists?”

The pressure is systematically engineered to push the government away from funding football infrastructure. They don't have to outright say no but the media cycle does the heavy lifting to make saying "no" look like the responsible, safe choice.

The cold sobering reality is that Football in Australia isn't just played on a pitch, it's played against an entrenched institutional machine.

And that’s why Perry Park is a microcosm of the wider Australian football experience. It’s the ultimate symbol of a game that is massive, vibrant, and vital to millions, forced to constantly beg crumbs off a table belonging to a machine that would rather see it stay in its lane or even die a slow death.

I live in hope ... but I doubt I will ever see it.